The main purpose of the research is to investigate adult friendship as a social institution and as a social psychological process. We are studying friendships in the lives of adults, ages 30-55, with a view to understanding (a) the role and function of friends in their lives, (b) the content and process of their friendship relationships, and (c) the ways in which such relationships impact upon a marriage. We are seeking to discover: (a) what friendships mean to adults and how important friends are in their lives; (b) the quality and content of these relationships; (c) the ways in which friendship and family life are connected--e.g., how friends may be a resource for strengthening and supporting the marriage relationship; how such intimate (non-sexual) relationships outside the marriage may be a threat; and how friendships support and/or inhibit traditional or changing role definitions and differentiation between women and men. Friendship patterns will be examined across class and sex. We will seek to understand both similarities and differences and to place the differences into the context of the different psychological and situational realities for women and men and for the members of each class, interpreting them through the experience and perceptions of the people involved.